Spray nozzle and alignment arrangement therefor



June 3, 1969 H. A. CARTWRIGHT 3,447,755

SPRAY NOZZLE AND ALIGNMENT ARRANGEMENT THEREFOR Sheet Filed Dec. 5, 1966INVENTOR //0mce @fi/WWM Sk W ATTORNEYS June 3, 1969 H. A. CARTWRIGHT34,447,755

SPRAY NOZZLE AND ALIGNMENT ARRANGEMENT THEREFOR iled Dec. 5, 1966 Sheeti of 2 INVENTOR United States Patent U.S. Cl. 239-551 3 Claims ABSTRACTOF THE DISCLOSURE A spray nozzle assembly is provided including anadapter with external threads to be threaded Within a bore in asupporting body. The nozzle tip means is mounted within the adapter by aquick disconnect arrangement including a U-shaped member which passesthrough holes provided in the adapter and is received within groovesformed in the nozzle tip. A tool is provided for adjusting the angularposition of the nozzles and comprising a generally fiat body havingsubstantially straight parallel opposite edges spaced apart a distancesubstantially equal to the desired spacing of the spray orifices ofadjacent spray nozzles, the tool including lug means on one edgethereof. A method of aligning the orifices includes placing the lugmeans of the tool in the orifice of a nozzle to be adjusted and thenmoving the adapter so that the edge of the tool opposite the lug isaligned with the center of the slot of an adjacent previously adjustednozzle.

The present invention relates to a new and novel spray nozzle assemblyand alignment arrangement therefor as used in connection with roadcoating or spraying machinery.

The present invention represents an improvement over the spray nozzle asillustrated in U.S. Patent No. 3,132,- 809 which also discloses spraynozzle means as used in road spraying machinery. In the operation ofsuch machinery, it is frequently necessary to change the spray nozzlesin accordance with the type of material being sprayed, and it is therebydesirable to include means for facilitating quick and easy changing ofthe spray nozzles.

In the aforementioned U.S. patent, means is disclosed for quickly andeasily changing the spray nozzles, but this arrangement suffers from thedisadvantage that the spray orifices of the nozzles are arranged in afixed angular relationship to the supporting structure or spray bar ofthe road surfacing machine.

In the present invention, means is also provided for quickly and easilyremoving and replacing the spray nozzle assemblies, and at the same timethe angular relationship of the spray orifices may be adjusted asdesired, any angular relationship being readily obtained with thisarrangement. Accordingly, the advantages of the aforementioned U.S.patent are obtained while additionally providing the further advantageof enabling ready adjustment of the angular relationship of the sprayorifices to the supporting spray bar.

Another important feature of the present invention is the fact that thespray nozzle assembly of the present in-' vention includes adapter meanswhich enables the assembly to be employed either with present roadcoating or spraying machinery now in use or it may be installed on newequipment. Presently existing equipment may be readily modified byeither threading the adapter means of the present invention intothreaded holes which receive the spray nozzles now in use, or by boringout such holes and threading them to receive the adapter means of thepresent invention. For example, an arrangement as shown in U.S. PatentNo. 2,330,568 may be readily modified 3,447,755 Patented June 3, 1969ice with the incorporation of the concepts of the present invention. Asseen in this latter patent, spray nozzles 25 are simply threaded intooperative position. It is apparent that with this type of arrangementadjacent spray nozzles in all likelihood are not properly aligned inparallel relationship, but in actual practice with spraying machines nowin use, it has been found that the spray orifices of the various spraynozzles will be disposed at many different angles with respect to oneanother. There is no means provided in this kind of arrangement foraligning the spray orifices in proper orientation and then for quicklyremoving the spray orifices and subsequently replacing them in properorientation without considerable difficulty. Due to the position ofthese spray nozzles on the machine, unless a special tool is available,the only way the spray nozzles can be replaced with the spray orificesin proper relationship is for a mechanic to lie down on the ground andthen adjust the spray nozzle as it is replaced to obtain the properorientation.

In the present invention, the adapter means is adapted to be threadedinto position to replace the spray nozzle such as illustrated at 25 inthe latter mentioned U.S. patent. The spray nozzle of the presentinvention is then secured in position Within the adapter means andinitially adjusted to its proper relationship. After this initialadjustment is made, the attaching means of the present invention enablesthe spray nozzle to be readily removed and replaced with respect to theadapter means in the exact same relative relationship each time so thatonce the initial adjustment is made, it is never necessary to re-adjustthe nozzles.

Accordingly, with the arrangement of the present invention, it isevident that the assemblies including the adapter means and the nozzletip means supported thereby may be initially adjusted to any desiredangular relationship with respect to the supporting spray bar whereuponthe nozzle tip means may be removed and replaced from time to timewithout the necessity of making any further adjustments.

It is apparent that the arrangement of the present invention is equallyadaptable for use with new equipment or with prior art equipment now inuse.

An object of the present invention is to provide a new and novel spraynozzle assembly including adapter means whereby the assembly is equallyadaptable for use with presently existing road coating or sprayingmachinery or with new equipment.

Another object of the invention is the provision of a new and novelspray nozzle assembly which can be initially accurately adjusted suchthat a plurality of nozzles can be arranged in desired orientation toone another at any suitable angle to the support structure and whereinmeans is provided for easily and quickly removing and replacing thenozzle tip means of the nozzle assembly so that the spray orifices willbe disposed in the same relative position to the support structure eachtime.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a new and novel toolfor aligning a plurality of adjacent spray nozzles.

A further object of the invention is the provision of a novel method ofaligning the plurality of adjacent spray nozzles.

Other objects and many attendant advantages of the invention will becomemore apparent when considered in connection with the specification andaccompanying draw- FIG. 3 is a top exploded perspective view of thenozzle assembly according to the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a bottom view of a spray bar illustrating the method of thepresent invention;

FIG. 5 is a view taken substantially along line 5-5 of FIG. 4 looking inthe direction of the arrows with certain portions broken away forclarity;

FIG. 6 is a top perspective view of the novel tool according to thepresent invention;

FIG. 7 is an exploded perspective view of a blank plug to be mounted inthe adapter means of the present invention; and

FIG. 8 is a top perspective view of the nozzle assembly showing amodified attaching means.

Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference charactersdesignate corresponding parts throughout the several views, FIGS. 1 and2 illustrate a portion of a supporting structure of spray bar includingan outer wall portion 10 and an internal wall portion 12 defining withwall portion 10 a manifold 13 adapted to receive liquid to be sprayedfrom the associated spray assemblies. A pair of valve bodies 14 and 14'have the opposite end portions thereof of reduced dimension and receivedwithin suitable holes provided in wall portion 12 and a lower wallportion 16. The construction of the components associated with valvebody 14' is identical with that discussed in connection with valve body14, and accordingly the same reference numerals primed will be appliedthereto.

Valve body 14 is provided with a first enlarged bore portion 20 whichtapers to a smaller bore portion 22 which in turn communicates with alaterally tapered bore as seen most clearly in FIG. 2. Bore 24 in turnis in communication with an enlarged chamber portion 26 at the bottom ofthe valve body, the lower internal wall of chamber 26 being internallythreaded as indicated by reference numeral 28.

As seen most clearly in FIG. 2, a rotatable valve member 30 of taperedouter configuration is snugly received within the tapered lateral bore24 in the valve body and has a passage 32 formed therethrough which isadapted to be aligned with the adjacent passages in the valve body sothat when the passage 32 is so aligned, liquid will pass downwardly fromthe manifold 13 to the spray nozzle assembly.

Valve member 30 is integral with an outwardly extending shaft 36supported within a member 38 and a seal assembly 40 provides aliquid-tight seal with shaft 36. The outer end of shaft 36 is fixed toan arm 42 the upper end of which is bifurcated and pivotallyinterconnected with a suitable operating member 44 through theintermediary of a pivot pin 46.

It is apparent that valve member 30 serves as a cutoff valve and may beselectively operated for cuttmg off any one or more of the individualnozzle assembhes along the spray bar. It should also be understood thatthis cutoff valve may be positioned at other suitable locations oreliminated if desired and do not form a part of the present invention.

As seen in FIGS. 1 and 2 as well as in FIG. 3, the adapter means of thepresent invention includes a generally cylindrical member 50 having alongitudinal bore 52 formed therethrough. The adapter means is providedwith screw thread means 54 on the outer surface thereof extendingdownwardly from the top thereof and spaced from the bottom thereof, thisscrew thread means being adapted to cooperate with the internal threads28 formed in chamber 26 of the body 14 for securing the adapter means inoperative position within the supporting body. A pair of lateral bores56 extend through the adapter means, these lateral bores 56 intersectingthe previously described longitudinal bore 52 and extendingsubstantially perpendicular thereto.

As seen most clearly in FIGS. 1 and 2, the lower part of thelongitudinal bore formed through the adapter means is of greater crosssectional dimension than the upper part of this bore so as to form aninternal annular shoulder 58 within the adapter means for limiting theinward move ment of the nozzle tip means hereinafter described.

The nozzle tip means as seen in FIG. 3 is indicated generally byreference numeral 60 and includes a substantially cylindrical outersurface 62 which is adapted to-be received within the lower enlargedpart of the longitudinal bore formed through the adapter means. Nozzletip means 60 has a longitudinal passage 64 formed therethrough which isin communication with an elongated spray orifice 66 at the lower orouter end of the nozzle tip means. A pair of grooves 68 are formed onthe outer surface of the nozzle tip means at diametrically oppositesides thereof.

The attaching means as seen most clearly in FIG. 3 is indicatedgenerally by reference numeral 70 and comprises a substantially U-shapedmember formed of spring steel or similar material. The attaching meansincludes opposite leg portions 72 and 74 interconnected by a bightportion 76.

Referring again to FIGS. land 2, the assembled interrelationship of theadapter means and nozzle tip means is clearly illustrated. The inner 'orupper portion of the nozzle tip means is snugly received within thelower part of the longitudinal bore formed in the adapter means. Whenthe upper end of the nozzle tip means-is in interengagement with theannular internal shoulder 58 formed in the adapter means, the nozzle tipmeans may be rotated so as to align the grooves 68 thereof with thelateral bores 56 formed in the adapter means. When the grooves andlateral bores are aligned, the legs 72 and 74 of the attaching means areinserted into operative position through the lateral bores 56 and withinthe grooves 68 so as to positively retain the nozzle tip means inoperative position within the adapter means. If it is desired to removethe nozzle tip means, the attaching means is simply removed from itsoperative position whereupon the nozzle tip means can be simply slid outof the adapter means. It is of course a simple operation to replace thenozzle tip means when desired.

Referring now to FIG. 8, a difierent type of attaching means isillustrated. In this view, the 'same adapter means and nozzle tip meansare illustrated. The attaching means in this arrangement takes the formof a cotter pin which extends through an aligned lateral bore in theadapter means and a groove in the nozzle tip means. The outer ends 82and 84 of the cotter pin are spread apart so as to positively retain theadapter means and nozzle tip means in the proper operative relationshipwith respect to one another.

Referring now to FIG. 7, a modification is illustrated wherein a blankplug is shown which is adapted to be substituted for the nozzle tipmeans previously illustrated. The blank plug is indicated generally byreference numeral and includes a cylindrical body portion 92 of the sameouter dimension as the outer surface of the nozzle tip means 60previously described. An enlarged head portion 94 is formed at one endof the blank plug.

The outer surface of the portion 92 of the blank plug is provided with apair of grooves 96 at diametrically opposite portions thereof, thesegrooves corrosponding to the grooves 68 formed in the nozzle tip means.A sealing gasket 98 is provided, this gasket being adapted to becompressed between the enlarged head 94 and the undersurface, of theadapter means previously described.

If it should be desired to close ofi one or more of the outlets ofliquid from the spray bar, the attaching means can be removed so as toslide the nozzle tip means out of the operative position shown in FIGS.1 and, 2, whereupon the blank-plug 90 along with its gasket 98 may bemounted in place of the nozzle tip means. It will be understood that theportion 92 of the blank plug means can be slid upwardly within the lowerenlarged part of the longitudinal bore through the adapter means,.whereand 108 which are spaced apart a distance substantially equal tothe desired spacing of the spray orifices of adj acent spray nozzleassemblies.

A l-ug means or key 110 is fixedly secured to the edge 106 as by weldingindicated at reference numeral 112. The upper surface 114 of the lugmeans may be arcuate in configuration so as to be relatively snuglyreceived within the spray orifice of a nozzle tip means, such sprayorifice having a corresponding configuration as seen in cross section.

Referring now to FIGS. 4 and 5, the method of aligning the spray nozzleswith the tool previously described is illustrated. The method may bedescribed in connection with the two nozzle assemblies as previouslyillustrated and described in connection with FIG. 1.

As seen in FIG. 4 which is a bottom view of the spray bar, a guard 120is secured to the spray nozzle assembly 122 which has already beenadjusted into the desired angular relationship with respect to the spraybar. It will be noted that the spray orifice 122' of the nozzle assembly122 is disposed obliquely to the longitudinal axis of the spray bar, andthi angular relationship may be varied according to the operatingconditions involved.

An adjacent nozzle assembly 124 is illustrated in its adjusted positionwith the spray orifice 124 thereof disposed substantially parallel withthe spray orifice 122'. The nozzle tip means 60' has also beenpre-adjusted so that the spray orifice 66' thereof is disposed inparallel relationship with the spray orifices of the two sprayassemblies 122 and 124.

After the adapter means 50 and the nozzle tip means 60 have beenassemblied with respect to one another and the adapter means threadedinto operative position as shown in FIG. 5, the tool 100 is employed byplacing the lug means 110 thereof within the spray orifice of nozzle tipmeans 60. The adapter is then turned by means of a small pipe wrench orvice grips as for example shown in FIG. 4 from the phantom line positioninto the solid line position wherein the edge 108 is aligned with thecenter of the spray orifice 66' of the previously adjusted spray nozzleassembly. When the tool is in the position shown in FIG. 4, it isapparent that the spray orifice of the nozzle tip means 60 will bedisposed in parallel relationship with the spray orifice 66' of thepreviously adjusted spray nozzle assembly. The tool is then removed fromthe spray orifice of the nozzle tip means 60 and may be employed withthe next adjacent spray nozzle assembly 130 to adjust it in a similarmanner. It is apparent that once the outer spray nozzle assembly 122 hasbeen adjusted, the adjacent nozzle assemblies may be successivelyadjusted in a manner similar to that just described.

It is apparent from the foregoing that there is provided according tothe present invention a new and novel spray nozzle assembly includingadapter means for use with present road coating or spraying machinery orwhich may be equally as well employed with new equipment. Means isprovided for initially accurately setting a plurality of spray nozzlesin a desired orientation with respect to a supporting structure and toone another, and the spray orifices of the various spray nozzleassemblies may be set at any desired angle relative to the supportingstructure. Means is provided for easily and quickly removing andreplacing the nozzle tip means of the nozzle assemblies wherein thespray orifices will be in the same relative position to one another eachtime they are replaced. A novel tool is provided for aligning aplurality of adjacent spray nozzles, and a novel method is provided foraligning a plurality of adjacent spray nozzles.

As this invention may be embodied in several forms Without departingfrom the spirit 'or essential characteristics thereof, the presentembodiment is therefore illustrative and not restrictive, and since thescope of the invention is defined by the appended claims, all changesthat fall within the metes and bounds of the claims or that form theirfunctional as well as conjointly cooperative equivalents are thereforeintended to be embraced by those claims.

I claim:

1. In a spray apparatus an elongated spray bar having an outer wallportion and an inner wall portion defining a manifold and a lower wallportion in spaced relation to said inner wall portion, spaced valvebodies extending downwardly from said inner wall portion and traversingsaid space, and having their upper and lower ends extending through andsecured in said inner wall portion and said lower wall portionrespectively, said valve body having an axial bore and valve membertraversing said bore and including a shaft extending through the outerwall of said bar and carrying an operating arm, the lower end of saidvalve body having an adapter means threaded into said axial bore with aportion projecting therefrom, said adapter being cylindrical and havinga longitudinal bore, a nozzle tip, and readily detachable means securingsaid nozzle tip within the bore of said adapter.

2. Apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein said projecting portion ofsaid adapter means includes lateral bore means formed therein extendingin a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal bore thereof, saidlateral bore means opening through the outer surface of said adaptermeans, said nozzle tip means including groove means formed in the outersurface thereof and adapted to be aligned with said lateral bore meansin the adapter means when the inner end of said nozzle tip means is inengagement with said internal shoulder of the adapter means, saidattaching means extending through the aligned lateral bore means andgroove means.

3. Apparatus as defined in claim 1 wherein the lower part of thelongitudinal bore in said adapter means is of enlarged cross sectionaldimension so as to define an internal shoulder within said longitudinalbore of the adapter means, the inner end of said nozzle tip meansresting against said internal shoulder to limit inward move ment of thenozzle tip means, said projecting portion of said adapter means havinglateral bore means formed therethrough and extending in a directionperpendicular to said longitudinal bore and opening through the outersurface of said adapter means, said nozzle tip means having groove meansadapted to be aligned with said lateral bore means when the inner end ofsaid nozzle tip means is in engagement with the internal shoulder of thelongitudinal bore in said adapter means, said attaching means extendingthrough the aligned lateral bore means of the adapter means and thegroove means of said nozzle tip means.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 4/1940 Walker 239 -551 5/1964Cartwright 239-569 US. Cl. X.R.

